8 Reasons Why 80's Films Are Awesome

Hollywood seems to have gone 80’s remake crazy. We’ve had Fright Night, we’ve had Footloose and we’ve got The Thing and Red Dawn to look forward to. When they’re not busy remaking classic movies, Hollywood busies themselves with re-releasing the ones they don’t quite think they’ll get away with remaking yet and so we’ve been treated to re-releases of Back to the Future and Ghostbusters, too.

Now, we’ve always loved the 80’s and it seems like Hollywood is only just catching on. It led us to wondering… what exactly makes 80’s movies so damn good? Well, ladies and gentlemen, we present to you our Top 8 Reasons Why 80’s Movies are Awesome…

1. The Effects

The Oscar’s introduced the award for best special effects in 1981 thanks to the brilliance of those used in An American Werewolf in London. Long before advanced CGI appeared in almost every single movie released, 80’s movies were taking pioneering steps in special effects. From the Brundle Fly in The Fly to the likes of Gremlins and E.T., from the outright gore of films like A Nightmare on Elm Street to the brilliant effects used in Michael Jackson’s Thriller video, the 80’s were testing just how far they could push their effects departments.

Must-see: The Thing

2. The Soundtracks

Complimenting the spirited story lines that were abundant in cinemas of the decade, 80’s
movie soundtracks were about as memorable as the films themselves. Though hugely varied, the soundtracks featured a huge number of classics. Dance movies of the era brought us the now cheesetastic Footloose-types, classics such as Back to the Future and Ghostbusters bought us Huey Lewis’s The Power of Love and Ray Parker Jr.’s Ghostbusters whilst the likes of John Williams continued to write their epic scores.

3. The Characters

It seems ridiculous to think that there was a time when Indiana Jones didn’t exist, a time when Marty McFly wasn’t nipping back to future, but there was, and it’s otherwise known as the 70’s. Whilst cinema has brought us much-loved characters in the years since the 80’s, none will be as memorable as those in this iconic decade.

4. The Clothes

Fashion has taken some whacky turns in the last century but arguably never more so than in the 80’s. Whilst films like Beetlejuice allowed for costume departments to experiment, even the more grounded Brat Pack films pushed the barriers of fashion decency.

Must-see: Pretty in Pink

5. The Story Lines

Long before Christopher Nolan was bending our minds with contorted stories, the 80’s were providing innocent thrills and spills in unique and refreshing ways. Though now part of pop culture, the story lines that appeared in cinemas throughout the 80’s were ground-breaking , allowing film-makers free imaginative reign on the page and on sets. An alien that comes to Earth and befriends a young boy? 80’s. A rag-tag group of scientists embarking on an entrepreneurial venture capturing ghosts for a living? 80’s. A car that can travel through time? They’ve all got 80’s written all over them.

Must-see: E.T. – The Extra Terrestrial

6. The Epicness

Is epicness a word? We don’t care, because the word totally applies to the cinematic produce of the 80’s. What other decade could a group of kids set off on an epic adventure where they’d find both gold and Sloth in one 114 minute chunk? Many forget that Star Wars Episodes V and VI were children of the 80’s and they’re nothing if not epic.

Must-see: The Goonies

7. The Directors

Many of the most famous directors made thei name in the 80’s. Whilst Jaws and Close Encounters both came out in the 1970’s, Steven Spielberg wowed audiences in the 80’s with the Indiana Jones trilogy as well as directing E.T. Robert Zemeckis brought us Back to the Future and Who Framed Roger Rabbit and the late John Hughes bought us many a Brat Pack movie. Other notable directors from this decade include John Carpenter, David Cronenberg and Rob Reiner.

Must-see: Raiders of the Lost Ark

8. The Quotes

Few films are as quotable as those produced in the 80’s (the decade features most dominantly in our Top 10 Movie Quotes Feature so this claim is fully substantiated). From John McClane’s ‘Yippee-kai-yay’, to E.T.’s eternal quest to ‘phone home’, 80’s movies gave as a constant source of reference. Who’ya gonna call, indeed.